The door opened before she could knock, and she found herself face to face with a beaming Caroline.
“Perfect, you’re just in time,” Caroline said, ushering her in. “I’ll introduce you to everyone, follow me. I just kicked everyone out of the kitchen since the food is almost ready.”
“Are you absolutely sure I shouldn't have brought anything?” Hannah asked as she followed her friend through the door. She paused to slip off her shoes and hang her purse on the coat tree, running a hand down her blouse to smooth it.
“Positive,” Caroline said. “Seriously, we have these parties every couple of months, and whoever hosts does all the cooking. No one likes planning their entrées around everyone else's side dishes, and of course, half the time people don't end up bringing what they say they were going to bring anyway. I know it probably feels strange, but for once in your life, you can just relax and eat the food someone else made.”
Hannah shared a smile with her friend as she followed her toward the dining room. It was true that Hannah’s expertise as a chef usually meant that she was automatically the one who took on the cooking whenever she had a get together. She didn’t mind, but she had to admit she was looking forward to eating whatever Caroline had cooked up. It smelled delicious, and the wafting scents held hints of spices that meant it was probably more exotic than what they served at Hawk’s Place.
“Guess who’s here,” Caroline said cheerfully as they entered the dining room. Hannah looked around to see five unfamiliar faces, plus Dean. Dean was Caroline’s husband, and was one of the nicest people she knew. His eyes, along with everyone else's, turned toward her when Caroline spoke.
“Hey, Hannah,” Dean said, rising from his seat to give her a quick hug. “We’re glad you could make it. I can handle introductions, I know Caroline's got something going on the stove. She made us take turns stirring it while she worked on the noodles.”
“Oh, shoot, the soup,” Caroline muttered. She hurried out of the room without a backwards glance, and Hannah kept herself from chuckling.
“Hannah,” Dean said, turning toward her and gesturing at the man he had been talking to. “I’d like to introduce you to my old friend, Bucky Huggins. We met in college and stayed in touch. He’s not from Shale, but he’s lived in the general area for most of his life.”
“Nice to meet you,” she said.
She began to feel a bit like a parrot as she repeated that to everyone he introduced her to. There was Rick Sanders, an editor at the news company Dean worked for, Rebecca, a slightly sour looking woman who worked with Dean and Rich, and the Finches, Lacey and her husband, Edward. Both of them were a decade or so older then her, and they seemed like pleasant people. Lacey gave her a welcoming smile and a delicate handshake, and Edward tipped an imaginary hat. “Pleasure to meet you,” he said. “You’re new to town, right?”
Hannah took the seat that Dean pulled up for her with a quick thanks. The chair was next to Edward, with Lacey on his other side and Rebecca across from them.
“Relatively new. I moved here nearly two years ago, though in many ways it feels like I’m still settling in.”
“Give it another few years and it’ll be like you always lived here,” he said with a wave of his hand. “Shale is a nice town. We bought a house here a few years ago. I couldn't ask for a better place to eventually retire in.”
“How do you know Dean and Caroline?” she asked politely as the others picked up their own conversations.
“I met Caroline at the library,” Lacey said, leaning forward slightly so she could look at Hannah around her husband. “We hit it off, and of course Dean and Edward became fast friends as well. You met Caroline in culinary school, right?” She must have seen the look on her face as she realized that the others had been talking about her, and gave a kind chuckle. “Don’t worry, Caroline talks about you a lot, but it’s never anything but flattering. She told us all about your restaurant. We were some of your first guests, and we've been there a few times since. It’s a lovely place.”
“Thank you,” Hannah said, meaning it. She couldn’t help the warm glow she felt whenever someone complimented Hawk’s Place. “It's been an adventure getting the place up and running, but I think it was worth it.”
She looked over at the sound of footsteps and saw Caroline approaching with a wine glass and a second, unopened bottle of wine to replace the empty one on the table. She set the glass down next to Hannah, then handed the wine bottle off to Bucky, who began opening it.
“The food is almost done,” Caroline said. “I hope everyone's hungry.”
“What are we having?”
“It’s a traditional Chinese dish,” Caroline replied. “I figured we might as well have something a bit different, and there aren’t that many Asian food restaurants in the area. It will be a little spicy, but nothing too hot.”
“Do you need help?” she asked as Caroline turned to go back into the kitchen.
“Nope,” her friend said, gesturing for her to stay put. “You guys keep chatting. I'll be back out with the first course soon.”
Sure enough, Caroline appeared not two minutes later, carrying a tray filled with bowls, which she passed out. The soup had a spicy looking broth with bok choy, bits of beef, noodles, onions, and what looked like lotus root. As soon as Caroline sat down next to Hannah at the end of the table across from Dean, she picked up her wine glass and proposed a toast to friends, family, and business. They echoed her, clinking their glasses together
